Players to Watch: WVU vs. Texas Tech

Big 12 Conference play is set to begin this Saturday in Morgantown as the West Virginia Mountaineers play host to the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Who are the key players to watch for on both sides of the ball for both teams?

WEST VIRGINIA OFFENSE - QB Nicco Marchiol

Nicco Marchiol took a swim in the shallow end of the pool last week in the win over Pitt, but this week, the redshirt freshman is going to be asked to do a little more. To this point, West Virginia quarterbacks have taken good care of the football, not throwing a single interception. He doesn't need to throw for 250 or more yards for the Mountaineers to win, but he has to push the ball some to keep Tech guessing.

WEST VIRGINIA DEFENSE - DL Mike Lockhart

Tech's offensive line is vulnerable to giving up some pressure, particularly on the interior. Lockhart and the big guys in the middle of the West Virginia defense have to do a good job of pushing the nose of the pocket to disrupt Tyler Shough and the Red Raider passing game.

TEXAS TECH OFFENSE - RB Tahj Brooks

A lot is made about Texas Tech's ability to throw the ball and rightfully so. But Tajh Brooks is a problem. He's rushed for 263 yards and a touchdown on 36 carries, averaging north of seven yards per tote. If Brooks gets going early, Tech will be able to do virtually whatever it wants on the offensive side of the ball.

TEXAS TECH DEFENSE - LB Jesiah Pierre

As Jed Drenning described perfectly on this week's game preview on In The Gun, Texas Tech defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter schemes up things to funnel the run game back inside toward his best playmaker, Jesiah Pierre. He's the eraser for this Tech defense. If the guys up front get beat, he's there to eliminate the big plays from happening in the run game.

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